19 April 2017

PHL's Second SSV Now Completed, Awaiting Inspection Before Voyage Home

19 April 2017

SSV-2 BRP Davao Del Sur LD-602 (photo : Gombaljaya)MANILA (PNA) -- Construction of the country's second strategic sealift vessel (SSV), the BRP Davao Del Sur (LD-602), is now officially completed, the Philippine Navy (PN) announced on Tuesday.With this development, the ship is now awaiting for the PN's pre-delivery inspection (PDI) team which will check the vessel for possible defect, said Navy spokesperson Capt. Lued Lincuna in a message to the Philippine News Agency."SSV 2 is now completed. PDI team for BRP Davao Del Sur is now enroute for Indonesia today (April 18)," he added.Lincuna said BRP Davao Del Sur is scheduled to sail for the country by first week of May and her arrival is expected on the second week of the same month.The BRP Davao Del Sur was launched last Sept. 29. She is the sister ship of the BRP Tarlac (LD-601), currently the largest Filipino warship in commissioned.BRP Tarlac was commissioned during short ceremonies at Pier 13, Manila South Harbor last June 1.She arrived in the Philippines last May 14 after a five-day journey from PT PAL shipyard in Surabaya which started on May 9.BRP Davao Del Sur is also a Makassar-class landing platform dock like her sister ship BRP Tarlac.Its delivery to the Philippines, tentatively scheduled this coming May, will complete the two-unit SSV procurement project with an approved budget contract of PHP4 billion sourced from the AFP Modernization Act Trust Fund.Just like the BRP Tarlac, the PN's latest SSV will serve as a floating command-and-control ship especially in the conduct of humanitarian assistance and disaster response and will also serve as a military sealift and transport vessel.The ship has an overall length of 120 meters, breadth of 21 meters, draft of five meters, and can carry a payload of 2,800 tons.She has a cruising speed of 13 knots and maximum speed of 16 knots and a minimum operating range of 7,500 nautical miles.BRP Davao Del Sur can carry 500 troops, two rigid-hull inflatable boats, two landing craft units and three helicopters. (PNA)